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Western League (defunct minor league)
The Western League is a name given to several circuits in American minor league baseball. Its earliest progenitor, which existed from 1885 to 1899, was the predecessor of the American League. During the 20th century, there were four incarnations of the Western League, including a Class D loop that played from 1939-41 and an independent loop (outside of "organized baseball") that began play in 1995. This article, however, concentrates on the two Class A leagues that played from 1900-37 and from 1947-58. The minor leagues went unclassified through 1901. From 1902 until 1911, Class A was the highest level in the minor leagues. In 1912, a new top tier, Class AA, was created; in 1936, a second tier, Class A1, came into being. In 1946, the Class AA leagues were renamed AAA, and the A1 loops were renamed AA. Thus the Western League - whose clubs were actually located in the Great Plains, Rocky Mountain States, the Upper Midwest and the Upper Southwest - was a top-level minor league until 1911, then two levels below Major League Baseball through 1935, and three steps removed in 1936-37 and when it was revived in 1947 during the post-war minor league baseball boom. Its longest-serving franchise was located in Des Moines, Iowa, which joined the WL in 1900 and played continuously through 1937, when the league shut down during the Great Depression. Des Moines then rejoined the reborn Western circuit when Colorado Senator Edwin C. Johnson founded it in 1947; this team, a Chicago Cubs affiliate called the Des Moines Bruins, then played for the final 12 years of the league's existence. Statistics Statistics for the Western League have been difficult to come by. Ryan Armbrust is attempting to retrieve and compile the league's individual statistics for players. They will likely be published by SABR sometime in 2007. 1900 League Teams in Denver, Colorado; Des Moines, Iowa; Omaha, Nebraska; Pueblo, Colorado; St. Joseph, Missouri; Sioux City, Iowa; all formed and created the new Western League. 1900 1901 The teams in Pueblo and Sioux City folded. New teams in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and St. Paul, Minnesota, formed and joined the League. Teams from Kansas City, Missouri, and Minneapolis, Minnesota moved from the American League. 1902 The Minneapolis and St. Paul teams joined the American Association. New teams in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Peoria, Illinois, formed and joined the League. 1903 1904 The teams in Milwaukee, Kansas City, and Peoria folded. the Sioux City, Iowa team from the Iowa-South Dakota League joined the League. 1905 The Colorado Springs team, with a record of 22-48, moved to Pueblo, Colorado on July 15, where they had a record of 30-44. 1906 The St. Joseph team moved to the Western Association. A new team in Lincoln, Nebraska, formed and joined the League. 1907 1908 1909 Teams from Topeka, Kansas, and Wichita, Kansas, joined from the Western Association. 1910 The Pueblo team folded. A new team in St. Joseph, Missouri, formed and joined the League. 1911 The Wichita team, with a record of 15-9, moved to Pueblo, Colorado on May 22, Their record there was 77-66. 1912 The Pueblo team moved back to Wichita, Kansas. Denver defeated the Minneapolis team of the American Association 4 games to 1. 1913 Milwaukee of the American Association defeated Denver 4 games to 2. 1914 Wichita Jobbers renamed Wichita Wolves. Indianapolis of the American Association defeated Denver 4 games to 2. 1915 1916 The Wichita team, with a record of 58-84, moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado on September 10. Their record there was 2-10. Louisville of the American Association defeated Omaha 4 games to 1. 1917 The Topeka team folded. A new team in Joplin, Missouri formed and joined the League. Colorado Springs moved back to Wichita. St. Joseph, with a record of 34-56, moved to Hutchinson, where their record was 32-24, on July 24. Sioux City moved to St. Joseph on August 5. Hutchinson defeated Joplin 3 games to none for the second half title. Des Moines defeated Hutchinson 4 games to 2 for the championship. 1918 The Denver and Lincoln teams folded. New teams in Sioux City, Iowa, and Topeka, Kansas, formed and joined the League. Hutchinson, with a record of 14-19, moved to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on June 2, where they compiled a record of 19-18. Topeka, with a record of 19-13, moved to Hutchinson, Kansas, where they compiled a record of 18-18, on June 2. The League suspended operations on July 7 due to World War I. 1919 The Hutchinson team folded. A new team was formed in Topeka, Kansas, and joined the League. Tulsa lead St. Joseph 3 games to 1 in the championship series when the series was cancelled due to bad weather. 1920 1921 1922 Joplin moved to the Western Association. A new team formed in Denver, Colorado, and joined the League. Tulsa beat Mobile of the Southern Association 4 games to 1, with 1 tie 1923 1924 Sioux City moved to the Tri-State League. Lincoln joined from the Nebraska State League. 1925 1926 Springfield of the Three-I League led Des Moines 3 games to 1 when the series was cancelled due to bad weather. 1927 St. Joseph moved to the Western Association. A new team in Amarillo, Texas formed and joined. Waco of the Texas League beat Tulsa 3 games to 2, with 1 tie. 1928 Lincoln moved to the Nebraska State League. A new team in Pueblo, Colorado, formed and joined the League. Tulsa beat Oklahoma City 4 games to 1, with 1 tie, for the championship. 1929 Amarillo folded. The Topeka, Kansas team from the Western Association joined. 1930 The Tulsa team folded. A new team formed in St. Joseph, Missouri and joined the League. 1931 Des Moines beat Wichita 4 games to 2 for the championship. 1932 Topeka moved to the Western Association. The Tulsa team folded. Oklahoma City beat Tulsa 2 games to 1 for the second half title. Tulsa beat Oklahoma City 4 games to none for the championship. 1933 Denver & Pueblo folded. Oklahoma City and Tulsa moved to the Texas League. The teams from Hutchinson, Kansas and Springfield, Missouri joined from the American Association. New teams in Joplin, Missouri, and Topeka, Kansas, formed and joined the League. Wichita, with a record of 6-13, moved to Muskogee on June 6, keeping the Oilers name, where they had a record of 20-82. Hutchinson, with a record of 25-32, moved on July 7 to Bartlesville, where they had a record of 26-38. St. Joseph beat Topeka 4 games to 1. St. Joseph lost to the Davenport team from the Mississippi Valley League 4 games to 2. 1934 Bartlesville, Joplin, Muskogee, and Springfield moved to the Western Association. The teams from Davenport, Iowa, and Rock Island, Illinois joined from the Mississippi Valley League. New teams in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Sioux City, Iowa formed and joined the League. St. Joseph beat Sioux City 3 games to 1 in the first round of playoffs. Davenport beat Des Moines by the same number. In the championship, St. Joseph beat Davnport 4 games to 3. 1935 Topeka folded. A new team in Keokuk, Iowa formed and joined the League. Omaha, with a record of 22-15, moved to Council Bluffs, Iowa on June 25, where they had a record of 33-31. Rock Island folded July 17. Council Bluffs folded August 27. Sioux City beat Davenport 3 games to none, and St. Joseph beat Des Moines 3 games to none, in the first round of the playoffs. St. Joseph beat Sioux City 4 games to 3 for the championship. 1936 Keokuk and St. Joseph folded. New teams formed in Omaha, Nebraska, and Waterloo, Iowa, and joined the League. Omaha moved to Rock Island on August 18. 1937 Rock Island folded July 7. Cedar Rapids and Waterloo moved to the Three-I League. Sioux City moved to the Nebraska State League. Davenport, Des Moines, and the League itself folded. The Post-World War II League In addition to Des Moines, the 1947 Western League consisted of teams in Sioux City, Pueblo, Omaha, Denver, and Lincoln. All six clubs were affiliated with major league farm systems. The WL expanded to eight teams in 1950, but the encroachment of televised baseball and major league franchise shifts into former AAA cities hit the league hard. In 1955, the Western League's two strongest franchises, the Denver Bears and the Omaha Cardinals, were admitted to the AAA American Association. The WL continued for four more seasons before folding in the autumn of 1958. Its last champion, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, attracted only 61,000 fans for the season. For temas that played in the Western league from 1947 to 1958, see Western League (1947-1958) References *Lloyd Johnson and Miles Wolff, editors. The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 1997 edition. Durham, N.C.: Baseball America. *Sumner, Benjamin Barrett. Minor League Baseball Standings: All North American Leagues, Through 1999. Jefferson, N.C.:McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0781-6 Notes Category:Minor league baseball leagues Category:Defunct baseball leagues